ABOUT US
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At The Lott Collective, every project starts the way we did, with a shared vision and the belief that something extraordinary comes from true collaboration. We believe design is alchemy: where vision becomes form and every material earns its place.
We are a California-based design house led by two female co-founders with complementary vision, and strengthened by the builders, makers, and creative minds who shape the process with us. From initial concept to final installation, we guide our clients through a process built on clarity, collaboration, and creative alignment.
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We call ourselves a design house deliberately.
A studio executes. A firm manages. A design house holds a point of view, one that is recognizable across every project, regardless of the client’s style or the size of the space. It means the work is anchored in something deeper than the moment: in art, in history, in the way culture shapes how people want to live.
It also means the relationship comes first. We do not take on projects we cannot fully inhabit. We do not design for portfolios. We design for people, and we see it through to the only moment that matters: when a client walks in and the space feels unmistakably theirs.
That is what a design house does. That is what we are.
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The Lott Collective is headquartered in Newport Beach, California, and serves clients globally.
While our roots are in Southern California, our portfolio extends across the country and beyond. We bring the same level of care, craft, and personal investment to every project, regardless of geography.
This is how we show up, wherever you are.
NIKKI THORNTON
Co-Founder, Creative Director + Design Principal
Nikki Thornton didn't arrive at design the conventional way. She came through the boardrooms of some of the most consequential tech companies of the last two decades, and she brought every lesson with her.
For over twenty years, she operated at the highest levels of the technology industry, supporting visionary CEOs and chairmen, building operational infrastructure from the ground up, and earning the kind of trust that extended well beyond the org chart. She helped take a high-growth cybersecurity company through a landmark IPO, and designed a corporate headquarters that set the standard for a global company's physical presence. Alongside that work, she cultivated relationships with board members, investors, and industry leaders that required equal parts precision and discretion.
Design was always the throughline, even when it wasn't the job title. For years, she designed, restored, and managed private residences for the principals she partnered closely with. She built a reputation for hospitality experiences, retreats, and events that people talked about long after they ended, because she understood intuitively that environment shapes how people feel. That work taught her something no boardroom could: how much it matters to get a space right for the people who actually move through it. She learned to listen for what clients don't always say out loud, to read how someone inhabits a space, and to design for the life they're building, not just the one they're living.
Before founding The Lott Collective, she spent a year in venture capital, sharpening her instincts for vision, timing, and what it means to build something that lasts.
Today, Nikki brings decades of operational discipline, deeply personal client care, and genuine design passion to The Lott Collective, a design house grounded in a simple belief: that the spaces we inhabit shape how we feel, and how we feel shapes everything else. For every client, the goal is the same, a place that tells their story, designed with the kind of clarity and craft that lasts.
With a formal design education and more than a decade of experience in high-end residential design, Jess Greenwalt brings a refined perspective and a grounded, collaborative approach to every project. As Co-Founder of The Lott Collective, she works with a distinguished clientele across the country, crafting interiors that are as livable as they are elevated. Her work is defined by restraint, material integrity, and the belief that intention shapes everything.
Jess is a designer who leads with structure, knowing that the most beautiful spaces are built, not decorated. With a strong technical foundation in space planning, CAD development, and construction coordination, she works closely with architects, builders, and artisans to ensure each environment is resolved with clarity and precision. Guided by a clear vision and refined through every detail, she translates complex design decisions into cohesive outcomes that feel personal, functional, and resolved.
Before co-founding The Lott Collective, Jess cultivated longstanding relationships with trusted vendors, fabricators, and trade partners, allowing her to source with precision and advocate for quality at every stage of the project. This network supports the firm's ability to deliver homes that reflect both craftsmanship and individuality, where each element contributes to a cohesive and lasting result.
Jess leads every project by first taking the time to understand not just her clients' taste and style preferences, but the life they are building and the home that should reflect it. She believes the most meaningful spaces capture not only who her clients are today, but who they are becoming, and that belief is felt in every detail, every decision, and every finished room. Known for navigating complex, large-scale projects with precision and calm, she is the steady, trusted guide her clients rely on from the first conversation to the final reveal.
Co-Founder, Design Director + Design Principal
JESS GREENWALT
WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT
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Every material, every detail, every partnership is chosen with purpose. We do not cut corners. Every detail gets the time it deserves. That commitment never bends.
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You will always know where your project stands, what decisions are coming, and what they cost. No surprises.
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We say what we mean and mean what we say. If something is not working, we will tell you. If there is a smarter way to spend, we will find it. That is what a real partner does.
IF YOU’RE BUILDING, REMODELING, OR FURNISHING A HOME AND VALUE AN HONEST & INTENTIONAL PARTNER, THEN WE WOULD LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR PROJECT.